The Case of Iida Tensei
by Auresalia
Summary: "Tell me, Ingenium... do you really think you were the hero you wanted to be?" Trapped in a world of his own making, a former hero tries to make sense of who he really is. What does it mean to be kind? To be a good person? Can you really trust yourself to make the right decisions? This fic is a request, the prompt was suggested by Pipefoxesonthemoon/Sideos.


Tensei's fingers twitched ever so slightly as the world began to seep back into his consciousness. He forced his eyes to open ever so lightly, feeling the unfortunately familiar feeling of the sandpaper-like insides of his eyelids scraping over his sensitive pupils. The pure white light that surged through pierced him like small needles; he weakly lifted his hand to shield himself, though it did little to stop the initial pain.

He lowered the inside of his elbow over his eyes, wincing as he felt something else press onto his mouth. Cold plastic, shaped to his face and covering the lower half of his face. Through the muddled thoughts, he slowly felt himself adjusting to the barely familiar surroundings. He slowly lifted his arm from his face, the bite of the light almost dissipated. He brushed his fingers over the plastic mask, feeling the ribbed tube extend from the end and off his bed.

_Breathing mask. For Surgery. Anesthesia._

As he solved that one mystery, the rest of the blanks in his mind began to fill themselves in.

_Hospital. Injury. Paralyzed. Surgery._

It was hard to make any kind of coherent thought... though whether it was the anesthesia or pain medications, he wasn't quite sure. He knew the walls were white, but that didn't stop swirls of iridescent purple and green from dancing across their surfaces, sparkling and shifting like some sort of clear oil spill that was smeared across the room.

"It's about time you woke up." A cold, snakely voice wormed its way into his ears, his muscles painfully tensing and spasming as he recognized that voice's owner.

His eyes shot around the room, looking for any indication of where they were- adrenaline working through the mind-dulling drugs to find-

There he was. Sitting- no... crouched atop one of the cabinets on the other end of the room, nicked and nearly broken katana in his grasp, staked ever so slightly into the ground in front of him.

Tensei remembered the smell of blood. It was thick as it coated his senses, the smell of rot overpowering the scent of even his own freshly spilled blood. He choked on his own shallow breaths, the metallic stench sticking to his tongue like spoiled food.

"S... Stain." He weakly whispered out, unable to speak properly with his aching vocal chords.

The villain pointedly stared back, using his sword to pull himself off the cabinet and onto the ground. He sauntered over, weapon dragging behind him as he moved to the hospitalized hero's side.

Tensei was too afraid to blink. This killer had caught him in his moment of complete weakness, unable to fight back. It was like a cat eyeing a baby mouse with its neck caught in a trap.

Why was he here? Was it to take care of the job he didn't finish? He knew he was left alive so he could report Stain's arrival... did he intend to tie up any loose ends now that his use was expended?

As the questions raced through his mind, something else had worked its way into the back of his mind, fighting to get to the forefront. Stain... wasn't right.

His eyes widened further as he began to process that thought. This person in front of him... certainly looked exactly like Stain. But there was something off... he couldn't tell whether it was the off-kilter gaze, or just that this person didn't even carry the same threatening, crazed aura that could have left him frozen, even without this villain's quirk. No... Whoever this was... it wasn't the real Hero Killer.

"Y-y-you're... not..." He eked out, trying to swallow the moisture that just wasn't in his mouth.

The figure standing over him chuckled, leaning in close.

"Of course I'm not. The _real_ Stain has more important things to do than deal with your sorry life." He sneered, pressing down on the plastic air mask, forcing its painful edges further into Tensei's skin. "I'm just a figment of your imagination."

The pro hero winced, unable to move his limbs further. "Y-you... can't-"

He wasn't able to finish his sentence before he realized that the Hero Killer was no longer there. He tilted his head over, looking at the other side of the room. There he was, right back where he began; crouching back on the cabinet, katana dramatically drawn before him.

"Now, I don't know whether it's some complex you've got, or just a side effect of whether they gave you. But somewhere in your mind, you've got a real itch to see me." Stain raised his sword, swinging it over his shoulder as he stared down the injured hero. "I wonder, then... Why exactly is our fallen hero daydreaming of the man who put him here?"

Tensei stared back, fingers clutching the rail of the hospital bed so hard that it almost broke the skin. "I- I... don't..."

"You _do _know. You're just unwilling to understand it." He leaned in, stern gaze piercing the broken man beneath him. "Or perhaps you just don't want to acknowledge that side of yourself. I'll ask again; what do you want from me, Ingenium? What could the Hero Killer give to you?"

The former hero was unable to respond. He felt the corners of his eyes twitch, heart threatening to burst from his chest. Imaginary or not, this brought back those memories... the dark alley, searing pain in his legs as he lay face down, helpless on the concrete...

"I'll make it easier for you, _hero._" The villain sneered, rancid breath washing over the injured man's face, forcing him to choke back a wellspring of vomit as he tried to maintain his composure. "What exactly do I do?"

"...You murder heroes." He hoarsely muttered, too frightened to expand further.

"Congratulations, you figured out that the Hero Killer kills heroes." He batted back, annoyed glance showing he was not pleased with the other man's answer. "_Why_ do I do it?"

"You hate heroes."

"Hate? Me?" He reared back, eyes widening in angry shock. "I've never hated a true hero in my life. Hating heroes... you're pathetic. You're just lying to defend your ego now!"

The villain leapt forward, pouncing onto the bed. His knees crashed into Tensei's stomach, causing him to lurch forward as the air was painfully forced from his lungs. He covered his mouth as a wave of bile rushed up his throat, though he quickly forced it back down.

Stain grabbed him by the top of his hospital gown, roughly yanking him to an upright position as he held the man's face mere millimeters from his own. He pulled out a knife, tapping the biting cold metal against the disabled man's thigh. "You're trapped in a world of your own making. I can do whatever I want to you here, and there's nothing you can do to stop it. I'll ask you again- _don't_ avoid the truth this time. _Why_ do I kill heroes?"

Tensei gulped, slowly opening his mouth to respond. When he finally began to speak, he realized his throat wasn't hoarse any more, as if it was miraculously healed. "Because... they're not worthy of being heroes."

"And why are they unworthy?"

"...Because you judge them. You don't believe they're redeemable."

The villain released his grip on the former hero, letting him fall back onto the cushioned surface of the bed. "Finally. Do me a favor next time and start with the truth. So tell me, have you figured out why you want me here?"

The injured man looked away, gulping thickly as he clenched his eyes shut.

"Come on, Ingenium." He chided, grabbing Tensei's hair and wrenching the man's head back to face him. "You summoned me, a judge and a killer. Last I checked, you don't have any desire to die, so that leaves only one reason you would want me here."

"No... Stop it!" He jerked his head away, to no avail against the iron grip holding him in place. "I don't need _you_ of all people to judge my heroism!"

"Well, you might not _need_ it but you apparently _want_ it." Stain stared down the man underneath him. "You just don't want to acknowledge that bundled knot of emotions that's eating away at you. Then... perhaps you do need it. Can you honestly tell me you'll be able to live with yourself without getting an answer?"

Tensei froze, eyes widening in horror as he blankly stared at the ceiling behind the villain. He felt his body tremble, ice flooding through his veins as he began to truly ponder what the imaginary murderer said to him. They remained there for what felt like hours, the former hero unable to provide any sort of answer. The silence was answer enough.

"That's what I thought." Stain replied, letting go of the distraught man as he stepped off the bed. Without any sort of warning, he slammed his hands down on the injured man's throat, grasping tight as he pulled him up into the air with almost no effort.

The disabled man did his best to fight back, clawing at the villain's arms as he desperately tried to force oxygen past the hands forcing his throat shut. His body screamed to kick the man holding him aloft, but his legs uselessly dangled beneath him, unmoving. He watched in horror as the floor beneath him began to crack, the pristine white tile falling away to reveal a bottomless void beneath him. He struggled harder, primal fear kicking in as he did everything in his power to free himself.

"Tell me, Ingenium... do you really think you were the hero you wanted to be?" His smile grew grotesquely wider, tongue snaking out to menacingly lick his lips. "Let's find out."

Tensei could only watch in horror as he was dropped into the void beneath him. He opened his mouth to scream, but his lungs were simply too empty for him to make any sort of noise. He watched helplessly as the ceiling of the hospital room receded from his view, becoming little more than a white spec among the infinite darkness, before being snuffed out entirely.

* * *

Tensei wasn't unfamiliar with waking up after being knocked unconscious. That was just something that came with the territory of being in the hero industry. But this time... it felt different. There was no grogginess, no dry mouth, no disgusting aftertaste of blood or anesthesia. It was as if his body was slowly turning itself on, images and colors slowly fading in as if he was watching the world through a cathode ray TV.

He winced as he felt the concrete below him digging lightly into his skin. It didn't hurt, but it certainly wasn't pleasant. It felt like his face was almost melded into the ground, as if he had been laying there for hours and his skin had filled in the crevices and points in the hard ground.

His eyes flitted to the area around him, as he tried to get his bearings on his surroundings. Brick wall. Metal ladder. Grey asphalt. Concrete trimmings. Green dumpster. An alleyway. He was in an alleyway, nighttime as the ambient light suggested. It all seemed so familiar to him, but he just couldn't place his finger on it-

Realization set in, feeling his mind get pummeled in stress as he remembered this place. It was _the_ alleyway- the place where he lost the use of his legs, where he was robbed of his career.

The sound of something swishing through the air caught his attention. He flung himself around, rolling away as he heard the sharp _clang_ of metal striking the ground where he once lay. He rolled over once more, stomach upwards as he saw the threatening visage of Stain there, bloodied bandages flung around like a scarf in the wind, twirling from the force of his failed strike. The hero killer snapped his head to the former pro hero, eyes narrowing, almost glowing red with hatred and bloodlust. His mutilated, nodule covered tongue slipped out of his lips, sloppily licking the lower half of his face as he stood at full height again.

"Come on, Ingenium. I told you, we're not in the real world." He sneered, pulling his sword back for another strike. "I can slice you into bits as many times as I want, it's not like it'll kill you. Now stand like the true hero you claim to be!"

Stain leapt forward at a blindingly fast pace, clouds of dust swirling behind him. Tensei gritted his teeth as he flung his arms upward, activating the quirk engines in his arms to send him flying back, away from the villain. He felt his body wracked as his armor scraped the concrete, sparks flying behind him as he slid down the alley.. He used his momentum to brace his palms against the ground, the movement sending his body up into a backwards flip, allowing him to swing his legs around and plant his feet firmly on the concrete.

Before the hero could launch a counterattack, Stain had already modified his jump, landing on the wall and using it as a springboard to launch himself towards the hero at an even faster speed.

He didn't have time to adjust his movement. Tensei quickly pulled his arms forward, closing his eyes and gritting his teeth as he braced for the strike...

But it never came.

The former hero slowly opened his eyes once more, lowering his forearms slightly to peek at what had happened.

Stain was still on the offensive, but his movements had quite literally slowed down to a staggeringly slow pace. He glided through the air as if he was travelling through thick water, almost floating forward. Tensei tried to move back, but to his horror, he realized he was _also _stuck in this time-slowing effect.

"You know," Stain began speaking, his mouth moving normally despite the rest of his body, "I've heard this happens to people who see no way out but are desperately trying to escape their fate. How much do you remember about this night?"

"...everything." He quietly replied, feeling his heart pound in his chest, despite the achingly slow beats. "I've done nothing but replay this night in my head."

"Of course you would." The hero killer's smile widened, eyes shrinking down to pinpricks of their normal size. His tongue hung out, sending small rivulets of saliva floating through the air. "The same story everyone says... the poor hero performing his duties, waylaid by the evil killer during the day. Never had a chance. Or... did you?"

"...What?"

Stain's eyes flitted to the side of the alley, looking at a form next to the dumpster. It was a small woman, petite statured. Her mouth was covered, eyes spilling over with tears as she stared at the two of them in horror.

"The girl, Ingenium... No one talks about the girl. Who was she, hero?"

"I don't..." His brows furrowed, "I have no idea who she is. I've never met her before."

"You met her at this very spot... don't tell me you forgot about her." The corners of his mouth curled upwards at almost inhuman angles as his eyes settled back on the hero before him. "Perhaps did you just never noticed her to begin with?"

"Of course I would have!-"

"Liar." Stain cut him off, movements gaining just a slight increase in their velocity. "You would have noticed her? Don't make me laugh. I'm _you_, Ingenium, I know the answers even if you don't. This alley... it's not your normal patrol path. You stick to the main streets where people can see you walk during the day. The first time in this alley was also your last. Why exactly did you come down here?"

"I... I-I saw you! Or at least something suspicious" He choked out, voice cracking with as he felt a flicker of frustration spark in his chest.

"No, you didn't." The villain corrected. "You didn't see anything. You _heard_ something. What was it?"

"I... I didn't... hear-"

A shrill screech broke through his mind like a sledgehammer, the flash of memories running through his brain. He _did_ hear someone... how could he have forgotten?! A woman's scream from the alley he was near. That's what drew him in... He remembered it clear as day now.

"I see you realized the truth then." Stain's expression shifted upwards, looking down on the hero with an almost smug superiority. His blade was less than an inch from Tensei's armored forearms. "Did you try to rescue the woman that screamed? Answer carefully."

Tensei's voice caught in his throat. He wanted to shout at the top of his lungs that there's no doubt that he would rescue any civilians in distress. He couldn't abide by breaking his own morals! But on the other hand... he couldn't rescue someone he didn't notice. He couldn't speak... voice robbed by his own moral contradiction. It was if the cogs in his head had just simply ground to a halt.

"...Your silence is enough of an answer." The hero killer chided. His katana connected with the former hero's armor, sliding slowly through his defenses like a hot knife through butter. "You forgot about the scream the moment you saw me. She wasn't hidden from you, either. Don't you remember where she was?"

Tensei could not respond.

"Of course not, you didn't notice her. _I_ did, though. She was between you and Stain, right up to the moment he leapt over your shoulders and slit your calves." His tongue lashed out, dripping his viscous drool everywhere. "He didn't even have to use his quirk; he just cut the strings off of a puppet. She was right next to you."

"Then- Then you would have-"

"Nope. I don't attack civilians, you should know that. Besides, how else could you have been found so quickly? She reported the attack and you were found within minutes. Of course I let her go. Poor Ingenium, he acts like he's out to save others but in reality that facade broke down the moment you found yourself a trophy for yourself."

"I don't... No! I-I don't believe you!" He shouted, voice trembling as he felt his breathing grow erratic. Anger welled in his chest, and before long he felt his own rage take over his thoughts. "This is just a hallucination, right? Of course I would be inventing things to make me feel guilty! This is... this was never real!"

"Oh... is that what you think then?" Stain smiled, licking his lips. "Why did you even become a hero in the first place?"

"B-be-because I've always found those who help others to be the coolest!" He shouted hysterically, trying his best to reel back from the attack. "That's how I've always felt!"

"You definitely do believe that, but... that's not a reason to go into heroism."

"Wh-what?! No, it _is-_"

"It's not a _reason_, Ingenium. It's motivation." He growled, pushing forward and propelling the blade further into the former hero's armor. "What's your reason?"

"I- I don't know what you mean!"

Tensei grunted as he felt the tip of the katana slit his forearms. He tried with all his might to jump back... and as he felt his feet leave the ground, time had sped back up, resuming its normal flow. He cried out as the blade dug deeper, but thanks to his backwards leap, it only broke the skin. He looked downwards, ready to find suitable landing to launch his own offensive-

There wasn't any ground beneath him. Where once there was concrete, a black void had opened up, its gaping maw ready to swallow him once more. It was too wide to avoid, and no amount of engine propelled movement could change his direction. He opened his mouth to scream in horror, but his breath refused to leave his lungs. He looked back at Stain, who balefully glared at him from the edge of the pit, katana lowered to his side as he watched the hero fall into the infinite blackness.

"Don't get testy with me. You know exactly what I mean."

* * *

Tensei's eyes snapped open, the former pro hero gasping desperately as he forced as much air into his lungs as he could. His chest burned, limbs flailing under something heavy and warm as he exhausted himself from his own panicked struggle. Despite how hard he was breathing in, it felt as if there was something clogging his lungs, forcing him to limit how much air he could take in. He slowed his breathing, trying to regulate his intake, but even then it was like there was a cap on how much he could breathe, suffocating him even as he calmed himself down.

He pushed his arms up, lifting the soft material that was holding him down. As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, it became clear to him exactly what it was; a soft, down comforter, covering him as he lay on a futon.

He looked around, taking in his surroundings. It was a bedroom... not his, but vaguely familiar. A downpour pelted the windows outside, its soft drumming echoing around the room. There was very little furniture; a dresser was wedged into the corner of the fairly large domicile, next to it an unplugged space heater intended for the winter months. A small TV with a Famicom sat in front of him.

It wasn't long before he realized what was missing from this scene before him- there wasn't a door out of the room.

He sat up, rubbing his painfully dry eyes as he tried to make sense of it all. Once his hands returned to his lap, he was taken aback at how low he felt he was to the ground, even as he was upright. He looked down, unsure of the weird sensation.

His eyes widened as he saw the outline of his hands in the dark room. They were... incredibly small, the fingers short and pudgy. He trembled as he brought them closer to his face, staring in disbelief at the appendages in front of him.

The former pro-hero slammed his hands down onto the comforter, clutching it tightly as he lifted it up and stared at what was underneath; his legs were just as small, covered in a pair of fitted pajamas.

The TV in front of him flared to light, snapping his attention away from his own body. Static rang for just a second as the white light transformed into a myriad of colors splashing across the old box's screen.

_"Alright, boys and girls!"_ A jovial announcer shouted from the tinny speakers. _"I hope you enjoyed that very special episode of Phoenix Ranger Featherman R! Stay tuned next week to find out how he will triumph over The Joker and his dastardly Masked Circle Masquerade Minions! But before we wish you a good night... it's time for our daily Hero Report!" _

Tensei lowered his arms, the blanket falling back onto his lower body. He began to piece together why this room was the way it was- it _was_ his room... His childhood bedroom.

" _We've got so many good stories, but so little time! So let's go straight to the ones you want to hear the most- Alright, kids! Shout out your favorite hero!" _

The kid watching the TV remained frozen, silent as he felt beads of sweat forming on his forehead from the rising heat of the blanket.

_"Come now, we don't have all night! Say it loud and proud!"_

"O-" Tensei felt his voice crack as he tried to force the words from his throat. He swallowed thickly, whispering, "The- The high speed hero... O'Clock."

_"I said LOUD AND PROUD!" _The announcer boomed, the sudden volume of his voice causing the walls to shake. Tensei shrieked, realizing just how weak and small he really was in this situation.

"I- just-" He felt his jaw tremble in irrational fear, before he clenched his eyes closed. He looked down, screaming as loud as he could. "HIGH SPEED HERO: O'CLOCK!"

_"There we go!"_ The announcer's voice returned to its normal, happy pitch. _"O'Clock is a really popular up and coming hero... did you know he has a successful career in China as well? He actually goes by a different name there: Hyper Quadfist!" _

A montage of the hero's various exploits flashed across the screen, showing numerous shots of the pro hero rushing forward, beating down all sorts of large and threatening villains with his bare hands. A horrifyingly familiar sensation of nostalgic wonder began to blossom in Tensei's chest, despite the rest of his body screaming at him to quell those emotions.

The shot then faded into recorded footage of O'Clock, donned in his trademark jumpsuit and bike-helmet-esque mask, dragging out an entire group of incapacitated villains. He raised a fist in the air, the camera panning to show the droves of civilians outside, cheering him on.

_"People loved him for his kind demeanor, and how he seemed so genuine in his interviews!" _The announcer informed his captive audience. _"And his fans just eat it up like hungry dogs! He's beloved by almost everyone! Isn't he so cool for doing the right thing?" _

Tensei sat stone still, too afraid to even breathe as he watched his childhood hero get literally paraded down the streets by his fans.

_"Doesn't it just make you wish you were in his shoes, helping those who need you the most?" _The narrator asked, his tone becoming more pointed and accusatory. _"It's what every kid thinks, right? Don't you think it would be awesome to be kind like him?"_

A few people in the crowd snapped photos of him, some of them even having pre-printed photos of the pro-hero in their hands as they rushed to him, hands outstretched with markers, begging for his autograph.

_"Those who help those in need are just the coolest, aren't they?"_

"Stop it! STOP IT!" The kid screamed, bunching his comforter together as he shoved his face into it. "You're wrong! I'm not like that! You're not real!"

_"Well you're right about that, I'm one-hundred percent in your head! And thaaaaat's precisely why I can't lie to you!" _

"No... You can't... please..." Tensei looked back at the screen, feeling his unnaturally unstable emotions swirling into a horrendous mixture of loathing and regret in his chest. "I... don't know what you want from me... but I can't stand this anymore... please... Just... stop."

_"Sorry, no can do! You asked for this, all I'm doing is showing you what you wanted to finally see!" _

"No, it's not... I'll do what you want, just... stop lying to me like this, I'm begging you!" Tensei felt a high pitched whine form in the back of his throat, as his eyes welled up with tears.

_"Not until we're done and you accept yourself for who you are." _The narrator responded. His jovial tone was gone, replaced with a deadpanned scolding.

"You have to be making this up! I wouldn't hurt someone like that!"

_"...Strange, I didn't mention anything about you hurting someone."_

The young child's eyes widened, his sobs and tears halting immediately as he felt a rush of ice through his veins. "I..."

_"Now, now, Tensei... who exactly did you hurt?"_

"I... I don't know what you're talking about." He whispered, clutching the comforter as tightly as possible in his tiny hands.

_"Well, if you won't answer the question for yourself... you should know by now what happens." _

Tensei felt a strong force pull on the blanket. He yelped as it was ripped from his grasp, flying off the futon and towards the TV. As the fabric touched the screen, it began to pass through, as if there was nothing there to begin with.

The overbearing heat from the comforter had shifted to a frigid cold. He brought his knees up to his chin, hugging his legs with his arms as he huddled himself into a ball. He leaned back onto his pillow, doing his best to get some semblance of warmth.

He felt the futon shift from under him. He quickly scrambled off of the bedding, watching as it was sucked into the television as well. The former hero backed up to the wall, pressing against it as hard as he could, knowing what was probably going to happen next, but mentally begging that it wouldn't come to pass.

He felt something tug at his leg, and before he could even react, he was slammed onto the ground as his feet were pulled out from under him. The air was knocked out of his lungs, quietly gasping and sputtering as he was dragged across the floor. He couldn't even scream as he was lifted up and dragged through the screen, its bright light being replaced by a haze of static, before his sight was cut off completely.

* * *

Tensei was starting to get used to these sudden shifts in space. When he came to, he found himself sitting upright in a cushioned chair that felt only slightly just short on padding. He shifted around, trying to find a comfortable enough position.

He looked around, trying to figure out just where exactly he was this time. It appeared to be a theater of some sorts- a very small one, with only a handful of seats. He had been in places like this before, mostly meant for independent filmmakers or art house films that would never get an official run. Every seat was filled, even with just a few dozen people here. He was seated at the very back of the theater, his row only having two seats.

He looked to his side, almost immediately recognizing the pitch black eyes staring back at him. It was Enigma, one of his most trusted comrades, part of his team. Her mouth hung slightly open, a row of bright white teeth peeking out from under her upper lip.

"I was wondering if you were going to sleep there like that... not that I would blame you. You're on some pretty strong pain meds, right?"

"Y-yeah..." He trailed off, looking around. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here because you want me to." She responded, patting him lightly on his shoulder. "Though, I can see everything you think. I didn't know you offered Koichi a position on the team."

"Oh, that... that was a while ago." He cracked a small smile, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment. "I figured he would be a good fit, and I really wanted to see him become an actual hero... it was a good idea at the time."

"He might have been a good team member... And I do understand where you were coming from, but I do want to point out that if word got out that you were helping a vigilante, then..." She paused, tilting her head slightly as she tried to find the right words. "Well, the authorities don't take that kindly. Please think about the livelihoods of your current teammates too, please."

His smile dropped as he realized what she meant. "O-oh... I... I didn't think about that. Sorry... Guess it was for the best he declined."

"No, it's fine, really! Your heart was in the right place."

"I know, but..." He sighed, rubbing the back of his head. "...Nevermind. What is going on here?"

"We all gathered to watch a movie you put together."

"...We?" He looked down at the other occupants in the rows in front of him, trying to discern their features in the darkness of the theater room. "...I- All of Team Idaten is here?!"

"Yup! We all took a day off just for you!" Enigma smiled back, gesturing to the rest of the crowd. No one turned to face him. "We were lucky enough to secure this space, too. It's rare to find a small theater that could fit your... er, accommodations."

Tensei looked down, realizing exactly what she meant. He wasn't sitting in a theater chair, it was a handicap accessible space meant to park a wheelchair- the one he was currently in. His legs were strapped to the contraption, a thin cover folded over his legs. He felt his stomach drop as his mouth began to dry.

Before he could even formulate a response, the sound of whirring film equipment behind him drew his attention, as beams of colored light began to spring out from the back of the room, throwing themselves onto the white cloth display at the front.

"Oh, it's starting!" Enigma quietly cheered.

There was no title card or credits to this film; it abruptly began with the scene of two kids crouched at the edge of a muddy creek, a pile of dry straw and some jars between them. They dug their hands into the mud, pulling out large clumps of wet earth, mixing it with the straw and forming them into balls.

"One of those kids looks like you." The woman next to him noted.

"Yeah... that's me."

"You're making dorodango? I didn't know you used to do that. Was it a hobby of yours?" She asked, sounding genuinely interested.

Tensei grimaced, clutching the armrest of his seat. He knew this, it was his childhood. But... he had also forgotten this. He barely recognized the person he was playing with on-screen. "I... I think I used to do it a lot. It was... more the other kid's hobby, if I'm being honest."

"What was his name? Looks like a sweet kid."

He paused as he struggled to find an answer. Who was this kid? He knew him, but... it was so long ago. He clenched his eyes shut, struggling to remember his name. Eventually, it clicked.

"Satoshi. Satoshi Nuramase."

"Tensei and Satoshi, huh?" Enigma echoed. "You two look like quite the duo. What was his quirk?"

The scene abruptly cut to another shot of the two kids, this time with the balls they had formed earlier. The two of them giggled and chattered as they used the jars to grind fine dust into the now-dry mud balls, in a process that seemed to almost instantaneously polish them and make them shine. Satoshi held his up, shouting _'Ta-daaaaaa!'_ in celebration.

"He..." He trailed off, shifting in his seat. He knew the answer, but he didn't want to say it aloud. He breathed in shakily, muttering the answer as he exhaled. "He was quirkless."

"Oh... poor boy. Must have been bullied a lot."

Just as she mentioned that, Tensei and his entire agency were treated to various scenes of Satoshi getting pushed around or beaten by his peers. Each time, the future pro hero would jump into the fray, using his quirk to knock his friend's abusers back.

Enigma sighed in relief. "Oh, good. You're so reliable! Where is he now?"

"...I don't know."

She turned her head, looking at him in confusion. "I'm surprised, you've always been the kind of person to keep tabs on everyone."

"I said I don't know." He repeated, gritting his teeth. He felt more memories shuffle into his head, things he had forgotten long ago and wished he didn't have to remember. "We should watch something else."

"We can't. You chose the film, we have to see it through to the end."

The film skipped forward a few years, moving past elementary school and into their junior high years. The two kids were running down a sidewalk, the morning sun shining brightly onto them. They were amongst a group of other students, all frantically rushing to get to school on time.

They had approached a busy intersection... but just before they could get there, the walk light turned red. The group stopped at the crosswalk, some of them groaning about the wasted time they didn't have. Behind the two kids, the sounds of a small commotion was breaking out, quickly approaching them. Tensei turned to investigate, but the reason became clear as the source of the disturbance roughly pushed past him and Satoshi; it was a particularly desperate looking classmate, too afraid of being late to wait for the traffic lights to change. He shoved himself to the front of the group, breaking out of the crowd and onto the crosswalk.

The moment he got onto the streets, a truck horn blared out, barreling down the road at full speed. The student froze in shock, watching in horror as the driver slammed on his brakes. The tires shrieked, the rubber burning against the pavement as it continued forward.

It didn't take a mathematician to see that the truck wasn't going to stop on time- if someone didn't do something, it was going to crush that student onto the asphalt.

Before he could even properly think about it, Tensei felt the engines in his arms surge to life, shooting him forward at a blinding speed, knocking anyone in his way to the ground. He sprinted onto the road, scooping the kid up and pulling him out of harm's way. The freight truck finally managed to stop, the body of the cargo container right where the student was frozen.

"Wow! Was that your first act as a hero?" Enigma excitedly asked, looking at her boss with pride. "You're such an awesome guy!"

Tensei did his best to smile, but he knew that this wasn't the end of the film. Not after everything else he had been through.

The film skipped further ahead a few months, showing just how drastically that event had changed the status quo. Tensei had become quite popular, with a new crew of friends with him, people who loved showing off their quirks and talking about their futures as heroes. He spent quite a bit of time with this clique, Yuuei coming up repeatedly as a potential option for all of them.

Satoshi, on the other hand, was nowhere to be found.

The lack of Tensei's trademark friend was not lost on either member of the audience. The hero had lost all color in his face, looking almost like a ghost of his former self. Enigma was looking at him, clearly wanting to ask questions, but instead she bit her lip and turned her head back to the screen.

Eventually, Satoshi did make it onto the screen, but only ever in the background. As the young Ingenium chatted about carrying on his family's legacy, his old friend was scrubbing his desk with a rag, trying to remove the degrading insults scribbled onto them. Another student with a different speed quirk challenged the promising kid-hero to a race as the quirkless boy was busy trying to get all the thumbtacks out of his shoes. Satoshi was pushed against the wall, books slammed out of his hands and cascading onto the floor. Tensei responded by veering off into another hallway, clearly looking to avoid the debacle entirely.

"I don't... get it." Enigma finally confessed, trying to make sense of this new dynamic. "You guys were inseparable before. What happened?"

"I... I don't know."

"Tensei... Please..." She looked back, her blank eyes echoing her hurt feelings. "I can tell that's not the truth."

The former hero slumped forward in his wheelchair, arms dangling off the sides as he stared blankly at his unusable legs.

"It doesn't even matter, does it?" He muttered. "I... don't care anymore. Do whatever you want with me."

The sidekick tilted her head, clearly taken aback by the reaction. "...I'm sorry, what?"

"This is my punishment, right? I can't change the past... there's no point in trying to fight it anymore." He shook his head, closing his eyes as he felt a soft trickle of tears fall out. "I just remembered Satoshi... it would be wrong to apologize to someone like that... I don't even know where he is, anyway."

"Did you go to different schools?"

"I was accepted into Yuuei. After that we never saw each other again." He sighed, breath shaking. "I... I was so stupid. I knew what he was going through, and I just... I just..."

Enigma placed her hand on his shoulder again, lightly squeezing. "Sometimes, kids just let things go to their heads. That's just going to be a fact of life. But what matters most is that as we grow up, it's on us to change and become better."

"Better?" Tensei echoed, head slowly rising up from his palms. "I- Am I... Am I a better person?"

He didn't get an answer. He grabbed her shoulders, clutching her in a death grip.

"O-Ow- You're hurting me!-"

"Please!" He begged, shaking her violently. "Please! Tell me I'm a better person!"

"Stop it!" She yelled, smacking his arms away. She scrambled out of her chair, backing up.

The former pro hero covered his mouth with his hands, realizing what he just did.

"E-Enigma... I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to-"

His apologies were cut off as he felt something encroach on the edges of his vision. A black ring appeared around his sight, slowly cutting off what he could see.

"No, no._ Nononono_!" He cried out, clutching at his head. "I can't go yet! Don't do this, please!"

"It's not me." Enigma whispered, sorrowfully shaking her head. "This isn't any of us. You're... you're being woken up. And... I'm sorry. I can't give you the answer you seek anymore. That's something you will have to decide for yourself."

"No! Not after all this!" He yelled, reaching out for his sidekick. She was just out of his grasp, and she clearly had no intention of moving forward at all. He grew more desperate as his tunnel vision grew more and more narrow. He pushed himself out of his wheelchair, tumbling to the ground as he tried to crawl towards the woman next to him. "Please! I need to know! I have to! _I need you to tell me_!"

The last thing he saw was the woman's mouth, moving but producing no sound. Tensei did his best to read her lips, but...

"I'm so sorry..." He whispered, curling up into a ball on the ground, closing his eyes as the last pinpricks of light vanished. "I'm so sorry for everything."

* * *

Tensei felt himself stirring once more. His eyes instinctively scrunched shut from the harsh, white light, cringing as he felt his sore eyes do their best to recede from the brightness. He groaned, weakly lifting a hand to cover his eyes.

"...Is he waking up?" A male voice quietly whispered, somewhere on the end of the room.

"Yes, for the time being. It won't be long before he's back asleep." A second, lighter and feminine voice responded.

"...Oh. Can... Can I speak with him before then?"

"Well," She sighed, "He really shouldn't be awake at this point in the procedure. But we also need to wait a few minutes to verify that he wasn't mentally impaired from the... incident. I'm required to inform him of the change in his medication first, but after that... I can take a walk around the floor and check on some of the other patients. We can't keep him awake for too long though, otherwise we risk the drugs wearing off. It would probably the worst pain he's ever felt in his life. I'm not exaggerating."

"...Okay." He replied, his voice sounding utterly defeated. Tensei could almost hear the grimace on the boy's face. He knew who it was... but the haze in his brain kept him from fitting the pieces together.

He heard a soft set of footsteps approach his bed, a soft set of fingers resting on his wrist.

"Can you hear me?" The woman asked him, voice slightly louder than before.

The pro hero slowly nodded.

"Can you say your name for me?"

"...Ten-" He hoarsely grunted out, stopping as he felt a coughing fit scratch his throat. "Tensei... Iida."

"Do you know where you are?"

"...Hosu General Hospital."

"That's right. I'm Nurse Sayoko, by the way. My quirk lets me measure your vitals by touching your wrist."

Her fingers lightly tapped again against his wrist, as if she was calling attention to it.

"Can you tell me how many fingers I have on your arm right now?"

"...Four."

"And what is eight plus three?"

"...Eleven."

"Good. It looks like you're doing okay, current circumstances and all. Can you open your eyes for me?"

Tensei slowly twitched his fingers away from his face. He slowly wedged open his eyelids, feeling them drag across the sensitive organs like fine sandpaper on weak wood. It was hard to keep them open, but he refused to accept defeat. It wasn't long before he adjusted to the light, slowly allowing his blurred vision to focus and become clearer. When he was able to fully see, he found the source of the voice. A woman, smiling wide with big brown eyes, black hair drawn back into her pristinely white nurse's hat.

"No other adverse effects, that's good." She sighed in relief, shoulders slumping as if a weight was lifted off her shoulders. "I apologize for waking you up like this- it appears you are allergic to the pain medication we were previously administering. You were beginning to develop heart palpitations... we just recently pinned it as the cause. We'll be switching it with something a little stronger, but it's not derived from the same source so you shouldn't have any further complications. We'll make sure to keep a close watch... just in case."

"O-okay." He sputtered out, feeling the numb pressure of the oxygen mask on his face pressing into his cheeks. "I'm- I'm sorry."

The nurse's eyes widened for a moment, shocked at his response. After a brief moment of silence, her expression contorted into a smile. She quickly covered it with her hand as she did her best to stifle the giggling that threatened to escape her lips.

"N-no! No, you don't need to apologize, it's not something you could help." She breathed in deeply, doing her best to regain her composure. "We'll make sure it doesn't happen again."

She looked back to the other end of the room, nodding to someone out of Tensei's view. Her gaze returned to her patient directly afterwards.

"I'm going to take care of some other things, but if you even start feeling the slightest amount of pain..." She grabbed a remote control from the inn table next to him, sliding it into his grasp. "...push the big red button at the top. I'll come right away, okay?"

The former pro hero nodded, confused as to what was going on. Sayoko continued.

"By the way, your brother came to visit you today. When he was informed of what was going on, he asked if he could have a chat with you while you were awake." She let go of his wrist, waving the young teen over. "I'll take my leave now."

Tensei tilted his head to the side, watching as the white clad nurse left the room, leaving only him and his brother there. Tenya had not moved from his spot, gaze cast down to the floor. His fingers were tightly clasped together, trembling as he remained planted next to the door.

"It's okay Tenya." He did his best to smile, though he knew it was only a weak shadow of his normal expression. "I'll be fine."

"It's... It's not that." The younger boy quietly responded, unmoving. "I... I'm sorry, brother. I failed you... I failed our whole family."

"Come on, don't be like that. There's no way you-"

"I did!" He yelled, fists clenched at his side. He gasped in surprise, eyes widening as he covered his mouth at the outburst. He continued, shaking as he struggled to keep his volume low. "I... I did. I... did something really stupid. I'm so sorry."

"Tenya... you're scaring me." He felt his stomach churn, the haze of the painkillers beginning to fade away. The backs of his legs began to tingle uncomfortably. "Come here... please. I can't keep watching you from so far away."

The young hero-in-training slowly shuffled over. He grasped the rail on the side of the bed in an iron grip, leaning on it with all of his weight and locking his elbows as if to keep himself from collapsing.

"Tenya... please tell me what happened." He urged, watching as his younger brother still refused to look at him in the eyes. The kid's eyes were red and puffy.

"I... went... I was so angry. I'm sorry." He grunted, forcing the words out through his gritted teeth. "I used the internship as an excuse to hunt for Stain... and I found him."

The former pro hero felt his limbs jolt as his heart skipped a beat. "You... what?!"

"I wanted to avenge you!" He whimpered loudly, his entire body trembling from his confession. "He... He destroyed the person I loved the most... you're the best person I ever knew... and you had your dreams robbed by that disgusting man! I... I knew what I did was illegal, but... I didn't care. I'm so sorry."

Tensei could only watch as the student's knees gave out from under him, sending him crashing to the ground. He leaned his head forward, resting his forehead on the small bit of mattress between the rails.

"I... fought him... my friends helped me beat him, but... we were all hurt really badly. The cops said they'd forgive me, but... they're going to strike our names out and say Endeavor beat him. It's all my fault." He whispered, utterly defeated. "I was nothing but selfish. I'm... I'm not worthy of being a hero. I'm going to drop out. I'm sorry, I couldn't carry on the Ingenium name like you asked. I even used it when I fought him... I defiled our family's legacy. I don't deserve it."

"Tenya, stop..." The older brother shook his head, panic setting into his chest. "Don't talk like that."

"Don't... please, brother..." He quietly batted back, gripping the sides of the rail like bars of a prison cell.

"No, I won't!" He said, voice getting stronger. "You can't quit like that! This is your dream-"

"Stop it!" The student cried out, raising his head to angrily glare at his older sibling. "You can't just talk me out of it! You never did something like that-"

"The hell I didn't!" Tensei yelled back, finding the energy to prop his upper body up with his elbows. "You think I didn't make stupid decisions like that? I've done worse! I'm... Tenya... I'm not a good person!"

The hero-in-training's voice caught in his throat, eyes wide as his mouth hung open in a rebuttal that refused to form.

The older man fell back onto the hospital bed, head thudding heavily against the mattress. His hand slid out to the handrail, fingers clutching the release latch, letting it slide down and away from the side of the bed.

"Tenya... I... I realized something not too long ago. I... I let you down too."

He felt the urge to close his eyes, but with a deep breath and clenched fists, he refused.

The former hero continued. "I know I always said I was doing this because I thought helping others was cool, but... the truth is... I just wanted to _be_ cool. I've let people down, abandoned them... just because I was too worried about actually being the hero everyone adored. I couldn't face that about myself... and so I lied to you, to my subordinates... even to myself. I forced myself to forget about those I hurt... I pretended that they didn't even exist... I just wanted to live a lie where I could convince myself I was the best one in the room. Sure, I may have done good things, but... they weren't for the right reasons. They never were."

The teenager reached forward, clutching Tensei's wrist tightly with both hands. "No. No, you're wrong. It's just the drugs talking-"

"No. It's who I really am." He shook his head, a pained smile forming on his lips. "Did the police tell you how I was found?"

"...They said... a woman found a police officer directing traffic on the street corner and told them. She said you rescued her!"

"No." His gaze shifted from the drop tiles on the ceiling, looking at his younger brother straight in the eyes. "I didn't go in there with the intention to rescue her. I saw Stain... and at the time, nothing else mattered to me. I... can't say that I was even concerned about whether or not she was going to make it out alive at the time."

"I... I don't understand." Tenya leaned forward, resting the bridge of his nose against his brother's arm. "Why are you telling me this? If I'm anything like that, then... I shouldn't be a hero either!"

"No. No you're _not_ like me." Tensei reached over with his free hand, gently lifting the young kid's head up and rubbing the student's cheek with his thumb. "You're nothing like I am... you recognized your mistakes and you're trying to fix them. Apparently, it took a bad trip for me to figure that out."

The kid's gaze softened, tears spilling out from his eyes as he pulled his older brother's hand from his face, grasping it tightly with both hands.

"You know..." Tensei began. "I think I asked you to carry on the Ingenium name because... I knew somewhere deep down that I wasn't really fit to represent the family lineage. You... you were always a better person that I was."

"Don't say that-"

"_It's true,_ Tenya-"

"No, it's _not!_" The young student exclaimed, pushing himself clumsily back to his feet. He stormed to the other end of the room, throwing the door open as he marched out. A pit formed in Tensei's stomach, not expecting to see his brother again.

It was less than a minute later that Tenya returned, arms full and bearing an absurd number of items. His arms were covered with the straps of bags that dangled next to him, almost doubling his body's width. His hands were carrying a stack of boxes of various sizes, arranged into a nice little pyramid with a small, simple brown cardboard cube on top. His backpack was hastily emptied, its books and papers replaced with a miniature garden's worth of flowers, spilling out, leaving a small trail of tulips behind him. He set the boxes down on the inn table next to his bedridden brother, throwing the bags down as he reached in and produced an absurd number of folded miniature paper cranes. There had to have at least been fifteen thousand of them in total. The hero in training grunted in frustration, slipping his bag off his shoulders as it landed roughly on the ground, the impact sending up a cloud of loose petals that slowly settled on Tensei's bed.

"They're... you're not..." He stammered, trying to find the right words. He clenched his fists, looking away as he closed his eyes. "You're not the kind of person you think you are. These people... they sent you all of this. It's from people who admire you, some you even saved... So please... just stop it."

The injured man stared back at his younger brother, eyes wide open in shock. He gulped, craning his head around to stare at the window.

"It... that's..." He slumped his shoulders, sighing. "I don't know what you want me to say."

"I want you to stop acting like you're the scum of the earth!" He batted back, leaning down to face his brother at eye level. "You were much better hero than I could ever be!"

Tensei turned his head back around, looking back at his younger sibling. "That's not true. You simply had an error in judgement."

"And that's exactly why I shouldn't be a hero!" He scrunched his eyes shut, shaking his head. "Heroes shouldn't do that!"

"You're right." The former hero nodded, conceding. "You made a mistake. But you didn't run away. You faced your decision, and you're doing everything you can to make it right. That's empathy, Tenya. Every great hero needs that. And that's precisely why you _should_ be a hero. So... please reconsider."

The younger student didn't respond at first, prompting his brother to continue.

"Tenya... if someone like you doesn't become a hero, then there won't be anyone there who can teach kids that it's okay to make mistakes, if they actually make an effort to fix them and learn from them. It'll just teach people that they should ignore their problems and just pretend that everything is okay, when it really isn't." He brought his hand up, rubbing the top of his younger sibling's head. "We _need_ people like you to be heroes."

The young boy looked up, shocked at the response he was given. "People... need me?"

"More than ever." He reassured the student. "So please don't quit. You can do so many great things as a hero, and you won't convince me otherwise."

Tenya paused, looking down as he considered what he was told. After an achingly long moment of silence, he nodded, steeling himself as he stood back up.

"...Okay." He finally agreed, relaxed hands hanging at his sides. "But only if you stop degrading yourself like this. I don't want to hear any more of this talk about how terrible of a person you think you are."

Tensei sighed in relief, a bittersweet smile growing on his face. "I think that's fair. And don't worry, I won't be running from my own shortcomings again. I may not be able to be a hero anymore, but... at least I can do that."

The younger brother nodded, his own lips curling slightly upwards. "I'll do the same. I won't stray from the hero's path any longer."

Their conversation was cut slightly short as they heard someone lightly knocking against the sliding door of the hospital room. Sayoko gently moved the door, sticking her head through and peeking at the two siblings.

"Alright, I've stalled as much as I could, but we _really_ need to get you back on your meds." She announced, a sympathetic glace cast on the both of them.

Tenya closed his eyes, slightly nodding. "I see. Thank you for giving us this time. And... Thank you, brother."

Tensei nodded, watching as the young hero-in-training took his leave. Sayoko closed the door behind him, walking over to her patient. Reached over to a nearby metal stand, grabbing the IV drip bag that hung off of it. She traced her fingers down the water line, stopping at the intake valve that jutted out of the middle of the plastic tube.

"Wait." He cleared his throat, head falling to the side as he saw the stack of boxes on his inn table. "Just... before you do, I... something about that box on the top. I've seen it before somewhere. Could you...?"

The nurse paused for just a moment, before sighing and shaking her head. "Fine. But we're only going to open that one. Understand?"

The older man nodded, which prompted her to grab the simple box and place it in his lap. He slowly picked it up, tracing his fingertips along the rough texture of the raw cardboard. He looked at the lid, completely featureless except for his own name written in calligraphy at the top.

"I know that writing..." He muttered. He noticed his fingers were beginning to tremble, ever so slightly. He pushed his thumb under the top, pushing the cover off and revealing the contents within.

It was a shining sphere, just barely the size of his clenched fist. He grabbed the glassy surface, pulling it out and observing it in greater detail.

It was a dorodango, but it was so much more than that- gold inlays curled around the sphere, their bright and warm glow contrasting the almost pitch black interior. Just from a glance he could tell that an intense amount of care and attention went into the creation of this bauble, with not even a single imperfection present.

"Thats..." Sayoko trailed off, voice filled with a sense of wonderment. "That's a Nuramase dorodango! Those things are worth millions!"

Upon hearing that name, Tensei's head snapped to the nurse standing over him. He felt chills run down his spine as he struggled to utter a single word.

"...What?"

"Satoshi Nuramase, he's one of the most prominent modern artists in Japan!" She exclaimed, eyes sparkling as she stared at the orb in the hero's hands. "I mean... it could be. It looks like one of his."

"Why... w-why do you think it's his?"

"It's how he got started. He originally broke out into the public eye when he created some pieces that looked like they were made from porcelain... he was in high school at the time, if I recall correctly." She tilted her head. "Though... I can't tell for sure, he didn't put his name on it. Is there anything else in the box?"

Tensei looked down at the box, the interior only showing the cardboard bottom. "...No. But... I'm pretty sure it's from him."

"Really?!" She reeled back, clearly excited by the work of art in front of her. "Did you save him before? I don't remember him being in any villain attacks."

"No... I think I probably did the opposite of that."

Sayoko's expression fell into a confused stare. "...I'm not sure what you mean, but... Oh well. I'm still surprised there's no letter."

The former hero brushed his fingers over the smooth surface, the corner of his lips twitching slightly upwards.

"I think... I think he said everything he needed to say." He sighed in relief, before placing the item back into the box and setting it onto the table. "Well, as promised, that's the only gift I wanted to open."

The nurse nodded, a small smile crossing her face as she focused her attention back onto the IV bag next to her. Without delay, she produced a syringe, sticking the needle into the intake valve and injecting the sedative directly into the former hero's bloodstream.

"Alright, the deed is done. You'll be out in a few seconds."

"I see." He replied, looking up at her. "...What will it be like?"

"You'll be knocked right out. A dreamless sleep, you won't feel the time passing. Most people say it's like they just blinked and woke up."

He nodded again, humming slightly as he laid his head back, staring at the ceiling right above him. He felt his eyelids begin to droop, the drugs acting as immediately as the nurse had promised.

"You know..." She trailed off, removing the syringe and dumping it into the biohazard waste bin perched on the wall. "...Your brother, he seems like a really good kid. Reminds me of All Might a little. You think he might be the next big Number One?"

"I don't know." He muttered, words slurring slightly as the drug took its hold. "But even if he never gets to be Number One... he'll always... be the best hero... there is."

* * *

Hey everyone!

Don't worry, my other works are still on the way. If you haven't been following my Tumblr, I've opened up my inbox to writing requests, some of which have given me some great ideas! Have something you'd want me to write? Feel free to send me an ask on Tumblr and I'll let you know if I'll write it into a fic!

This one was requested of me by a great fellow fic writer, Pipefoxesonthemoon. They suggested writing something about Tensei Iida, specifically recovering from his attacks by Stain. I took influence from the last two episodes of the Neon Genesis Evangelion anime, which was a kind of psychoanalysis bender between the major characters of the series. While I don't think I made anything as in-depth or profound as that show, I'm glad I was able to take the concept and create something I felt I did a good job with.

Pipefoxesonthemoon (they go by Sideos here on FFNet) is a great writer, too! If you haven't already, check out their flagship fic, "His Father's Son." And don't forget to follow them on Tumblr as well!

And while you're at it... I decided to give in and create a Twitter page as well, if only to keep up with more of the fandom there! If you like what I write, please follow me there as well!


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